Attempt at Korean #2: Dolsot Bibimbap

So here is my second attempt at cooking Korean food. This time had better results than the last time making soondooboo jigae. My mom gave me a dolsot, or a stone pot, which gets really hot and is perfect for getting that crispy almost-burnt rice on the bottom.

Dolsot bibimbap is one of the most basic and classic Korean dishes. It's probably the most commonly ordered food at Korean restaurants by people who don't know much about Korean food, because it's pretty benign -- just rice, veggies, and meat mixed around. In fact, that's what bibimbap basically means -- mixed rice. Us Koreans, we keep things simple and straightforward!

I didn't have a recipe to go by, so I just reached deep into my Korean core and allowed my cultural instincts shine through. Ok, not really... but I think it turned out alright! As an overview, you have to prepare each individual ingredient (vegetable or meat) separately, then combine them all later. This is probably the only annoying part about making this dish.

The first step was to put the dolsot in a hot oven (I set mine to 400F, pretty arbitrary) for maybe 15 minutes or so, while I was preparing the ingredients. I used frozen spinach, carrot, zucchini, bean sprouts, bulgogi (Korean-marinated beef), and a fried egg. The key is to julienne the carrot and zucchini, or roughly in matchsticks. If you have a mandolin, I recommend using it for this dish, it will save you a lot of time!


I cooked the spinach in the microwave... you can certainly use fresh spinach, but I find frozen works just fine for this dish.


I made a very simple marinade of soy sauce, sesame oil, and minced garlic. I essentially coated each set of vegetables separately in the marinade, and cooked each in a small frying pan individually. After each was cooked, I placed them on a plate in a neat pile, separate from the other vegetables.


As for the bulgogi, I used some inexpensive eye round steaks, which I put in the freezer for a bit before slicing it into thin pieces (makes it much easier to slice). I marinated the beef with sliced onion, scallion, minced garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, salt, pepper, and a little bit of sugar. I cooked the beef in a pan until browned.


I next took the dolsot out of the oven (carefully!), and onto the stovetop on medium-low heat. I brushed some sesame oil along the inside of the pot, then added some cooked white rice. I pressed it down into the bottom/sides to ensure crispness.


I then just added each set of cooked vegetables and meat, arranging them in an organized circular fashion. I fried an egg (and broke the yolk accidentally), and added that on top. After letting this go on the stovetop for maybe 10 minutes, I sprinkled some sesame seeds on top, and added a dollop of gochujang (Korean hot chili paste). Then I mixed it around, scraping the bottom of the crispy rice (my fave part!!), until everything was incorporated. YUM!


You could certainly make adjustments as you see fit -- use chicken or tofu instead of beef, add shitake mushrooms, etc. It's a great dish to make with produce you want to get rid of in the fridge at the end of the week. And if you don't have a dolsot, you can make the same dish in a regular bowl. Just don't put a regular bowl in the oven or on the stovetop, obviously!

Dolsot Bibimbap
serves 1

Ingredients (all approximate):
dolsot, or stone pot
1 cup cooked white rice
1/2 carrot
1/4 zucchini
small handful bean sprouts
1/4 cup cooked spinach
minced garlic
1 egg
1 onion
2 scallions
1 lb eye round steak (or other cut of beef, or even chicken/tofu)
soy sauce
sesame oil
salt & pepper
sugar
sesame seeds
gochujang (Korean hot chili paste)

Directions for bulgogi (ahead of time... this makes a lot, good for future meals):
1. Put beef in freezer for 15 minutes or so. This will make it easier to slice.
2. Slice the beef as thinly as possible.
3. Slice the onion, and cut the scallions into 2" pieces.
4. In a large bowl or dish, add about 1/4 cup soy sauce, 2 Tbsp sesame oil, several cloves of minced garlic, 1 Tbsp sugar, salt and pepper.
5. Add the beef, onions, and scallions to the marinade and stir to ensure everything is evenly coated.
6. Cover and put in refrigerator for at least a few hours, or overnight. The longer you leave it, the better it will get!

Directions for bibimbap:
1. Place dolsot in 400F oven.
2. Julienne the zucchini and carrot.
3. Heat a small skillet with a bit of vegetable oil To a bowl, add 2 Tbsp soy sauce, 1 tsp sesame oil, and 1 clove minced garlic. Add the julienned zucchini. Cook the zucchini in the skillet, leaving the marinade in the bowl. When zucchini is tender, remove from pan and set aside on a plate.
4. Add the carrot to the bowl, then cook in the skillet, leaving the marinade in the bowl. Remove from pan and set aside on same plate, in a separate pile. Repeat this with the bean sprouts and spinach.
5. Cook the desired amount of bulgogi/onion/scallion in a hot skillet. Add this to the plate with the vegetables.
6. Carefully take the dolsot out of the oven, and put on the stovetop, over medium heat.
7. Add about 1 tsp of sesame oil in the dolsot. Use a brush to spread the oil around the inside of the dolsot.
8. Add 1 cup of cooked white rice, and press the rice down.
9. Add the vegetables and bulgogi, one item at a time, arranging them on top of the rice in an organized fashion.
10. Crack an egg into a heated skillet, taking care not to keep the yolk intact. Add the egg to the dolsot.
11. After about 10 minutes, remove the dolsot from the heat. Add a sprinkle of sesame seeds. Add a tablespoon or so of gochujang (according to your desired level of spice).
12. Mix thoroughly, scraping the crispy rice from the bottom, and enjoy!